“I’ve been very fortunate to play this long, been a part of a lot of good organizations, played with a lot of great players, so it means a lot to me.” ~ Paul Martin on playing his 800th NHL game, December 2, 2016

“I’ve been very fortunate to play this long, been a part of a lot of good organizations, played with a lot of great players, so it means a lot to me.” ~ Paul Martin on playing his 800th NHL game, December 2, 2016

Jagr is up for grabs, though I doubt a 45 year old is high on Vegas' list.

For goalies, I'm guessing both Luongo and Montoya are going to be grabbed. Montoya for sure.

From Edmonton, I'm fearing Chris Russell or Griffin Reinhart are going. Benoit Pouliot would be best case among the top available players. Pitlick and Khaira are definitely names to be watched and top forward to lose would be Desharnais. It would be a shame to see him go so quickly after just joining the team.

As of April 1st, 2016,the first entry in my Gold & Steel fantasy series, As Fierce as Steel, is on sale. Visit www.thegoldandsteelsaga.com for more!

Also...PAUL MARTIN is left open by San Jose. Will LC be trading her Sharks jersey for a Golden Knight?

Maybe...but at his age (36) and expensive contract, I can't see Vegas snatching him up over guys like Dillon. Never know, though.

“I’ve been very fortunate to play this long, been a part of a lot of good organizations, played with a lot of great players, so it means a lot to me.” ~ Paul Martin on playing his 800th NHL game, December 2, 2016

“I’ve been very fortunate to play this long, been a part of a lot of good organizations, played with a lot of great players, so it means a lot to me.” ~ Paul Martin on playing his 800th NHL game, December 2, 2016

“I’ve been very fortunate to play this long, been a part of a lot of good organizations, played with a lot of great players, so it means a lot to me.” ~ Paul Martin on playing his 800th NHL game, December 2, 2016

Edmonton are going with the third jerseys as their mains, by the look of it. Muted the orange from pylon Orange to pumpkin Orange, and went to navy blue from royal blue. Interesting look. I like the Isles look, aside from the white sleeves. People have been harping on the Devils' jerseys but I don't mind them. The only one I really don't like is the Nashville jersey. I love that Minnesota are going with the forest green and creme colours as their main look.

As of April 1st, 2016,the first entry in my Gold & Steel fantasy series, As Fierce as Steel, is on sale. Visit www.thegoldandsteelsaga.com for more!

“I’ve been very fortunate to play this long, been a part of a lot of good organizations, played with a lot of great players, so it means a lot to me.” ~ Paul Martin on playing his 800th NHL game, December 2, 2016

“I’ve been very fortunate to play this long, been a part of a lot of good organizations, played with a lot of great players, so it means a lot to me.” ~ Paul Martin on playing his 800th NHL game, December 2, 2016

Oilers lost Griffin Reinhart. It was looking like he was going to be the pick. It's tough for Edmonton to lose any defender, after accumulating a deep core that they so desperately lacked for so long, but I'm okay with it. Reinhart was seen as a big acquisition from the Isles, but it's been a pretty mediocre run for him, so, out of the realistic picks, he's the easiest loss.

As of April 1st, 2016,the first entry in my Gold & Steel fantasy series, As Fierce as Steel, is on sale. Visit www.thegoldandsteelsaga.com for more!

“I’ve been very fortunate to play this long, been a part of a lot of good organizations, played with a lot of great players, so it means a lot to me.” ~ Paul Martin on playing his 800th NHL game, December 2, 2016

Vancouver Canucks: Luca Sbisa , D -- Sbisa, 27, had 13 points in 82 games this season and has 88 points in 465 NHL games with the Philadelphia Flyers, Anaheim Ducks and Canucks.

Arizona Coyotes: Teemu Pulkkinen , F -- Pulkkinen, 25, had two goals in 13 games split between the Coyotes and Minnesota Wild this season, and has 13 goals and 22 points in 83 NHL games, including 70 games with the Detroit Red Wings.

New Jersey Devils: Jon Merrill , D -- Merrill, 25, had six points in 51 games this season and has 36 points in 216 NHL games with New Jersey.

Buffalo Sabres: William Carrier , F -- Carrier, 22, had eight points in 41 games this season, his first in the NHL.

Detroit Red Wings: Tomas Nosek , F -- Nosek, 24, has one goal in 17 games with the Red Wings the past two seasons and this season helped Grand Rapids win the Calder Cup as American Hockey League champion, scoring 22 points in 19 playoff games after scoring 41 points in 51 regular-season games.

Dallas Stars: Cody Eakin , F -- Eakin, a 26-year-old center who was drafted in 2009 by McPhee when he was the GM of the Washington Capitals, had 12 points in 60 games this season but averaged 17 goals, 36 points and 80 games played in each of the previous three seasons with Dallas.

Florida Panthers: Jonathan Marchessault , F -- Marchessault, 26, scored 30 goals for the first time this season, one of 26 NHL players who scored at least that many.

Los Angeles Kings: Brayden McNabb , D -- McNabb, 26, had four points in 49 games this season and has 50 points in 238 NHL games.

SECOND GROUP

Carolina Hurricanes: Connor Brickley, F -- Brickley, 25, a pending unrestricted free agent, had five points in 23 games with the Florida Panthers in 2015-16 but spent all of this season in the AHL with Charlotte, where he had 26 points in 69 games.

Winnipeg Jets: Chris Thorburn , F -- Thorburn, 34, who can become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, scored three goals in 64 games this season and has 127 points in 750 games in his NHL career, which dates to the 2005-06 season.

Philadelphia Flyers: Pierre-Edouard Bellemare , F -- Bellemare, 32, had eight points in 82 games this season and has 34 points in 237 games in three NHL seasons.

Tampa Bay Lightning: Jason Garrison , D -- Garrison, 32, who has one year remaining on his contract, had nine points in 70 games this season, his lowest total in his seven full NHL seasons.

New York Islanders: Jean-Francois Berube , G -- Berube, 25, has 13 wins, a 3.11 GAA and .900 save percentage in 21 NHL games, including 14 with the Islanders this season, when he won seven games and had a 3.42 GAA and .889 save percentage.

Nashville Predators: James Neal , F -- Neal, 29, who has one year remaining on his contract, scored 23 goals this season and six in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. He has 238 goals and 451 points in 632 NHL regular-season games.

Calgary Flames: Deryk Engelland , D -- Engelland, 35, who could have become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, scored four goals and 16 points in 81 games this season.

THIRD GROUP

Toronto Maple Leafs: Brendan Leipsic, F -- Leipsic, 23, played six games for the Maple Leafs last season and spent this season in the AHL with the Toronto Marlies, scoring 51 points in 49 games and five points in 11 playoff games.

Boston Bruins: Colin Miller , D -- Miller, 24, had 13 points in 61 games this season after scoring 16 points in 42 games last season when he was a rookie.

Ottawa Senators: Marc Methot , D -- Methot, 32, who has one year left on his contract, played on the Senators' top defense pair with Erik Karlsson this season and had 12 assists in 68 games before scoring four points, including two goals, in 18 playoff games.

San Jose Sharks: David Schlemko , D -- Schlemko, 30, who has three years left on his contract, had 18 points in 62 games this season and has 87 points in 360 NHL games.

St. Louis Blues: David Perron , F -- Perron, 29, who has one year left on his contract, had 18 goals and 46 points in 82 games this season and has 159 goals and 378 points in 652 NHL games.

New York Rangers: Oscar Lindberg , F -- Lindberg, 25, had 20 points in 65 games this season playing primarily as the Rangers' fourth-line center after he recovered from offseason hip surgery.

Edmonton Oilers: Griffin Reinhart , D -- Reinhart, 23, has two assists in 37 NHL games since being selected with the No. 4 pick in the 2012 NHL Draft. He spent this season in the AHL until May 7, when he played in Game 6 of the Western Conference Second Round against the Anaheim Ducks.

Montreal Canadiens: Alexei Emelin , D -- Emelin, 31, who has one year left on his contract, has 72 points in 380 NHL games, all with Montreal, after getting 10 in 76 games this season.

FOURTH GROUP

Anaheim Ducks: Clayton Stoner , D -- Stoner, 32, a stay-at-home defenseman who has one year left on his contract, played 14 games for the Ducks this season after appearing in 50 last season.

Columbus Blue Jackets: William Karlsson , F -- Karlsson, 24, had NHL career highs in assists (19) and points (25) in 81 games this season after getting 20 points in 81 games last season.

Chicago Blackhawks: Trevor van Riemsdyk , D -- Van Riemsdyk, who turns 26 on July 24, had an NHL career-high 16 points and a plus-17 rating in 58 games this season and was a Stanley Cup champion with Chicago two years ago.

Pittsburgh Penguins: Marc-Andre Fleury , G -- Fleury, 32 and with two years left on his contract, is a three-time Stanley Cup champion with the Penguins and has 375 regular-season NHL wins and 62 in the playoffs.

Washington Capitals: Nate Schmidt , D -- Schmidt, 25, had an NHL career-high 17 points in 60 games this season and has 43 points in 200 games with Washington.

“I’ve been very fortunate to play this long, been a part of a lot of good organizations, played with a lot of great players, so it means a lot to me.” ~ Paul Martin on playing his 800th NHL game, December 2, 2016

It's definitely has been. I gotta say, I'm actually surprised with how underwhelming the picks were from Vegas. Eakin, Neal, Methot, Van Riemsdyk, Perron, Schlemko and Flower are the big picks, obviously, but beyond them, it seemed to be mostly about keeping the salary cap down and picking up draft picks. It looks like they're going to take their chances on the next draft, so to speak, and try to rack up a plethora of potential stars. I'm sure there will be a few more trades between now and the time the puck drops on October 4th, but I was expecting a few more bigger picks out of this from Vegas.

Regardless, it goes without saying that Vegas will have the strongest starting expansion team since the WHA merged with the NHL.

As of April 1st, 2016,the first entry in my Gold & Steel fantasy series, As Fierce as Steel, is on sale. Visit www.thegoldandsteelsaga.com for more!

“I’ve been very fortunate to play this long, been a part of a lot of good organizations, played with a lot of great players, so it means a lot to me.” ~ Paul Martin on playing his 800th NHL game, December 2, 2016

“I’ve been very fortunate to play this long, been a part of a lot of good organizations, played with a lot of great players, so it means a lot to me.” ~ Paul Martin on playing his 800th NHL game, December 2, 2016

“I’ve been very fortunate to play this long, been a part of a lot of good organizations, played with a lot of great players, so it means a lot to me.” ~ Paul Martin on playing his 800th NHL game, December 2, 2016